"I believe in pink. I believe that laughing is the best calorie burner. I believe in kissing, kissing a lot. I believe in being strong when everything seems to be going wrong. I believe that happy girls are the prettiest girls. I believe that tomorrow is another day. And I believe in miracles."
~ Audrey Hepburn

1.26.2011

La Vida Chilena

First things first! I flew out of Los Angeles, CA at noon on Monday
and arrived in Santiago, Chile on Tuesday morning, therefore accomplishing goal
#025: Visit another continent.
It has been one HECK of a few days! I have been taking some pictures 
and thought you might like to see how my trip to Chile has gone so far :)

Since my program didn't officially start until today,
 a few friends and I stayed in a hostel last night.

 
 

We met soo many people (some from UCSB, some from other UC's,
and even from other countries!) and had so much fun getting to know one another 
and playing with the hostel's pet guinea pig, named Lucy.




 We grabbed lunch at a random café (there are so many here) but we were not at all
satisfied with our meal :( After going home to nap, we resolved to go out later that night,
get ourselves a real dinner, and celebrate our arrival in this city with some drinks! 

We went out to Bella Vista, which is a beautiful area of the city with tons of bars and 
restaurants. We ended up eating at a restaraunt called "Como Agua Para Chocolate"
 (we chose it because it is named after a popular US book! Which is now on my to-read list...). 
At that restaurant I had what I would consider to be one of the best meals EVER. 
We drank Pisco Sours (a popular Chilean drink comprised of brandy & mango juice.
Sounds weird but it is so sweet and soo yummy!) and shared a bottle of wine at the table. 

I didn't bring my camera out, but my friend Lara took a few pictures!

 

Today I went with the other students in my program to
 La Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile (which happens to be the university
 I will be attending here) to meet our host families.


 


I was really nervous to meet my family, but they turned out to be so great!
I am living with a woman named Enriqueta (Keti for short) who totally reminds me of my nana,
 her son Pablo who is an assistant professor at the Universidad de Chile, and two other girls
whom are both studying abroad (one from Illinois and the other from S. Carolina).
I also have my own room, which resembles a college dorm!

While Tuesday was spent mingling with other travelers and, obviously, speaking english,
on Wednesday I spoke almost entirely in spanish. I mess up a lot, but my host family
is very helpful. I can't believe all of the subjects we exhausted! My ability
to communicate in spanish really surprises me! This means I accomplished goal
#046. Have a conversation in Spanish




I spent the day getting to know my new host family,
eating great food that Enriqueta prepared, and walking around the city.
Santiago is HUGE. The narrow cobblestone roads and beautiful architecture
are something you might see in Europe. The graffiti (sometimes beautiful artwork,
other times political rants), the litter, and the neglect of many of the buildings
remind me of something you might see in East LA or Hollywood. And the energy,
the street vendors, and the metropolitan atmosphere are definitely features
that remind me of New York. I happened to notice that there are TONS
of stray dogs in the city. What is weird is they don't bother people at all --
they just go about their own business and wander around, chasing cars. Strange...
Overall, a very intricate city. I am excited to continue exploring!




 



 





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6 comments:

Anonymous said...

LOVE LOVE LOVE LOVE!!!! it's so colorful and green and puppy-licious!!!! it looks gorgeous and i'm glad you're having fun!!!

love, shell

Gabriella said...

Marcella ! What an exciting adventure you are on ! I cant wait to read more im so excited FOR YOU haha

Bryan Murray said...

Wow! Everything sounds so fun and exciting! I wish I was there with you exploring and drinking Pisco Sours. Glad you're enjoying everything so far (before you actually have to start doing schoolwork haha). You say Santiagio is so big and intricate but I'm sure you'll get to know it pretty well in no time.

P.S. I especially liked the hangman grafitti in your Flickr pics.

P.P.S. I love seeing your face on Skype. Let's do that often <3

Anonymous said...

I am so jealous! Keep living it up. I hope you have the best time of your life.

<3 you :)
Lex

P.S. I'm going to start posting to you in only spanish :P

amanda areias said...

Marcella, you left a comment in my blog a few week ago but I was traveling and unable to write. Sorry for my delay!
And what a great experience you are living!!! My dream is to get to know Chile one day!!
Please, let me know if you are going to be able to go Brazil, maybe I can help you with some tips.
Hugs
Amanda
from www.givemeflour.com

Marcella Alyssa said...

Thanks everyone!!!!

Amanda - thanks for the comment! I want to go to Brazil so badly but it is pretty hard finding a travel buddy since it will be an expensive trip. I will let you know if I go, because I would LOVE some travel tips!